Why we need to listen to Brie Larson

Indiewire is running a nice series of interviews with actors in notable films from 2013. One that caught my eye was with Brie Larson who stars in one of my favorite movies this year Short Term 12. There are two big reasons why we need to listen to her. First, as screenwriters. Listen to what Larson has to say on how she goes about choosing a role:

Here is the key excerpt:

In order to feel like all of the time and the preparation… can be honest and continually inspired, and I can feel excited about what it is I’m doing, it just has to be something I’m willing to look at multiple times. I’m excited to read the script every day. I’m excited to talk about it and look into it.

I’m excited to read the script every day. I’m excited to talk about it and look into it. As screenwriters, we have a lot of goals. Getting people excited may be the single most important one.

Everything — concept, characters, plot, dialogue, scenes, transitions, themes, pace, tone, atmosphere, feeling — should combine to get readers excited. To compel a creative talent like Brie Larson to read a script like Short Term 12, a movie with a budget well under $1M, a figure likely less than costs for craft services on other movies she’s been in like 21 Jump Street, and say, “I’m excited to take several weeks of my life and make this wonderful little movie.”

When you assess one of your own screenplays, try imagining yourself as an actor/actress. Imagine having to commit months of time to one story universe, working with a production crew day after day, the hard slog of making a movie.

Is your script something you would want to read “every day”? Is it something you would be “excited to talk” about and “look into” weeks on end?

It’s a tough test. But it’s where the rubber meets the road: Can a script generate excitement in someone who reads it?

The second reason we need to listen to Larson: She is exceptional in Short Term 12 as these clips demonstrate:

It’s an immersive, completely convincing performance that won her the Best Actress Gotham Award.

What if you wanted to read a script that an actress like Brie Larson could get “excited” about? You can do that because Short Term 12 screenwriter-director Destin Daniel Cretton and the movie’s distributor Cinedigm have given Go Into The Story the exclusive rights to host the script here. Click the link. Download the PDF. And read the script.

You want to write a script that gets people’s attention? Write one that gets them excited.

You want a movie to get excited about? Watch Short Term 12.

For more of the Indiewire interview with Brie Larson, go here.

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